PSYCH 1X03 Chapter Module: 06-Attention
Document Summary
Introduction to attention: defining attention is a challenging task. Selection the act of attending to an object to select it apart from the unattended objects. Irrelevant information in the environment acts as noise and distracts us. Automatic processes are triggered involuntary by external events and trigger the capture of attention: fast, efficient, obligatory manner. Controlled processes guide attention voluntarily and consciously to objects of interest: slowly because require more cognitive effort. A salient piece of information is one that appears to naturally pop-out to you: this information automatically captures your attention whether you intended it to or not. The spotlight model: your attentional spotlight focuses only on part of the environment at a time, attention can be consciously directed across the visual scene, attention can be hijacked by unconscious processes that can quickly grab your attention. Objects within your spotlight: process preferentially, faster reaction time (decreased reaction time = faster reaction!, higher accuracy.
